The ecology of temperate reefs in a changing world

Abstract

The world’s temperate coastlines support a rich marine biodiversity and provide billions of dollars of ecosystem services to the global economy annually. Temperate coasts are, however, some of the most densely populated and impacted coastal regions of the world and are increasingly modified by a range of local and global impacts. Understanding the natural functioning of these systems, and the impact of human activities, has been the focus of intense research for more than a century. This focus has led to a community of scientists that gathers at the International Temperate Reefs Symposium (ITRS) to share advances in the field. The papers in this Theme Section (TS) are a selection of the research presented at the 12th ITRS in January 2019. The papers cover the breadth of research at the conference, from algal and animal physiology, to population dynamics and range-shifts, the effects of natural and anthropogenic disturbances on systems, and new insights into efforts to mitigate these impacts. These contributions bring together the rich history of the field and enhance our understanding of how these systems will function into the future.